17 Years of Inspire(d) Magazine!

Thank you to our readers and advertisers for making Inspire(d) Magazine a possibility. We appreciate your support over the years! It is wild to think we’ve been at this for 17 years. Here’s a quick look back on this “experiment in positive news” from past to present.

2003-2006 – Aryn reads biography about Dan Eldon. Gets inspired. Travels around Canada, then China & Southeast Asia. Comes back to Iowa with an idea for a positive news magazine.

2006 – Aryn and Benji meet. Aryn tells Benji about Inspire(d) idea on first date. He says, “Let’s do it!” They get engaged one week later.

2007 – Benji and Aryn get married August 17! The first Inspire(d) rolls off the press October 4! For our first three years, we printed the insides of the magazine at Graphics Inc in Calmar, Iowa, and our cover at Howe Printing in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin. We had custom racks made at KolGol in Waukon, Iowa, and were printing 3,000 per issue. Benji delivered magazines in our trusty Subaru Legacy.

2007-2008 – We started off publishing 10 months a year (with a June/July issue in the summer and a November/December issue in the winter), but quickly realized we couldn’t keep going at that pace and still enjoy life!

2008-2010 – We switched to a bi-monthly schedule, printing every two months for the next two years. It was good run, but we found we were ready to move up to new printers with full color capabilities and more magazine-printing options. The cover and insides would all be printed at Crescent Printing in Onalaska, Wisconsin, for the next 13 years!

2010-2023 – We started printing quarterly and found that this was the sweet spot in making the best quality magazine possible, being able to sell ads, and also maintain some semblance of balance in our lives.

2012 – Our only daughter, Roxie, was born and quickly moved into boss status!

2018 – We got a new magazine hauler, a Dodge Grand Caravan Minivan! Benji officially drives the “Rad Dad Van” now, delivering 12,000-17,500 magazines / quarter.

2020 – Athena the Bernedoodle joined the team!

2022 (a busy year!) – Aryn was accepted to and completed the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Iowa Program February-May. Benji launched his podcast in May. We launched our fancy new website in July. We were featured on a Public Radio interview for Marketplace December 30!

2023 to present – There was a major paper shortage during the pandemic, and we were having trouble getting our regular paper. We found a new printer that had more access and made the switch to Schumann Printers in Fall River, Wisconsin, with the Spring 2023 Inspire(d) Magazine. They have been fantastic to work with!

Today – Future – Our goal is to keep bringing positivity to the masses through our print publication, website, podcast, social media (Facebook & Instagram), and newsletters! Want to help us out? Can you please take this survey so we can learn more about our readers? THANK YOU for inspiring us for 17 years!